Italian manufacturer AMS provides safety by using honeycomb panels

Italian road safety firm Industry AMS has developed and patented high efficiency energy absorption systems provided with special metallic honeycomb panels. The SMA Crash Cushion was certified to the European Standard EN1317. It also tested successively against the US standard NCHRP in a frontal impact with a pickup truck provided with an anthropomorphic traffic device - and obtained the best Euro NCAP score.
May 6, 2016 Read time: 3 mins

Italian road safety firm Industry AMS has developed and patented high efficiency energy absorption systems provided with special metallic honeycomb panels.

The SMA Crash Cushion was certified to the European Standard EN1317. It also tested successively against the US standard NCHRP in a frontal impact with a pickup truck provided with an anthropomorphic traffic device - and obtained the best Euro NCAP score.

According to 7403 Industry AMS, the efficiency is guaranteed by high-tenacity steel which permits absorption through plastic deformation of the hexagonal cells of the impacting systems. On the basis of such honeycomb absorbing system, Industry AMS srl has developed a Crash Cushion Family (parallels and wide) certified according to EN1317, for the speed classes of 50, 80, 100 and 110km/h.

The use of a honeycomb absorbing system produces almost uniform absorption of energy during the entire crash cushion deformation. This prevents force peaks and consequent deceleration peaks, which are common in discontinuous energy absorption systems.

The company says that the energy absorption system is so efficient that it has been considered appropriate to prove the compliance of SMA Crash Cushion even with the stricter tests of the American NCHRP standard.

The Crash Cushion SMA 110, already tested and certified according to EN 1317, was subjected to a lateral and frontal test with a 2tonne pickup, according to the impact scenarios and TL TL 3:37 3:31 of NCHRP 350. In the case of frontal impact, the vehicle was equipped with crush test instrumented dummy able to calculate the biomechanical parameters related to the head, neck and chest and establish the damage and/or injury which would affect the vehicle occupants.

The use of a crush test instrumented dummy is then a direct method for the determination of injury to the occupants of the vehicle.

The ultimate goal of a road safety device is, in fact, to ensure safety of the occupants in case of impact and by using an instrumented dummy we quantitatively verified how the SMA Crash Cushion responds to this purpose.

In fact, the parameters that determine the performance of an impact Crash Cushion according to the 1317 standard, NCHRP and MASH are parameters of the vehicle and literature data show that these are not always related to the injuries to the vehicle occupants.

Ultimately, the SMA 110 Crash Cushion successfully underwent two additional shocks performed according to NCHRP 350. The company says that makes it almost completely compliant with the two main reference standards.

Road Markings, Barriers & Workzone Protection

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Advances in bitumen technology will boost surface wear life and quality
    September 19, 2012
    From chip fat to banana bags, the race is on to find new bitumen additives which will solve two problems with one solution: replace diminishing petrochemical-based products and make use from waste rather than landfilling it - Kristina Smith reports It is not just the desire to preserve our environment which is driving the industry’s search for products which don’t eat up raw materials. The hunger of emerging economies – particularly China – mean that resources can be hard to come by, so it makes sense for s
    Read More
  • European transport pricing deadline
    September 3, 2012
    Public consultation is nearing completion on the sensitive issue of internalising external costs to make transport users pay for the perceived negative effects they inflict on society, including air pollution, CO2 emissions, accidents and congestion. Within six months a universal model will be unveiled by the European Commission (EC).
    Read More
  • Rondino mixes it up with the GRP wood and steel guardrail
    May 6, 2016
    Rondino, based in Savigneux, northeastern France, has developed a new range of guardrails - the GRP guardrail. Rondino claims it is the first wood and steel guardrail in the world with such high performance values. The aesthetically pleasing guardrail is CE certified according EN1317, N2 level from W2 to W5.
    Read More
  • Delta Bloc’s D 80 suitable for single-row use in a median
    July 5, 2016
    The DB 80, from Austrian manufacturer Delta Bloc, is a vehicle restraint system with a “New Jersey” profile. In conjunction with the continuous tension bar, it prevents the breakthrough of cars, according to the Delta Bloc. A Jersey barrier or Jersey wall is a modular concrete or plastic barrier used to separate lanes of traffic. It is designed to minimise vehicle damage in cases of incidental contact while still preventing the crossover case of a head-on collision. Plastic water barriers of the same gen
    Read More

Highlighted Content